Nameless
by The Clock Strikes Thirteen
Summary: I was never recorded. I had no history, I had no future. I suppose I was just one of the many hundreds their coven had turned but I was different. He told me I was different. My story was a sad one, but perhaps you shall read it. Perhaps you shall discover what happened all those years ago to the daughter of a favor-seeker who caught the eyes of a Vampire King. Vladimir/OC.
1. Chapter 1: Forest of the Dead

**A/N: I swear it's like pilot season for fanfiction right now for me! Anyway, I couldn't help but write this because... I can... No, seriously, this plot bunnie won't the leave me the heck alone! Anyway, I was doing a bit of reading on the less explained but far more interesting characters such as Vladimir and Stefan, but saw that while they had mates, they were never named! How lazy is that?! **

**So I decided to make up some sort of back story for Vladimir's mate. This story borrows a few aspects of fairy tales without any written permission at all, but... fairy tales are for everybody, so who cares! **

**Anyway, please proceed to review and read... or is it read and review? Whatever, just do both of those things if you please. **

**P.S. If you are Romanian and happen to know something about ancient Romania that my extensive research time on the internet failed to mention, please tell me, I don't want to insult anybody! **

**P.P.S. Life in ancient Romania is relatively unknown so I'm going off by snippets I've read and my own imagination. I don't know little details but once again, if you know anything at all, please message me! Also, I have changed our heroine's age slightly. I read somewhere that she was supposed to be twenty- three but I don't know how true that is and I am sure that a few thousand years ago, a woman of that age would have been already married with -presumably- numerous children. **

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**_Chapter One: Forest of the Dead  
_**

_Dacia, Romania, 1900 B.C_

It was dark, the moon was shining high in the sky.

To be out at night was a death sentence in our time. Then again, to be out at all was a death sentence in our time. My papa and I, we were different, we were not stupid peasants who dared leave their homes after the sun had set. We were favor-seekers.

My horse, Raluca seemed sensed the danger that was all around us as we rode through the forest. I heard something in the trees beside us but I did not dare look for fear of turning around and heading towards home.

My papa gave the woods a fearful glance and then looked to me. I attempted to appear calm although truly I had never been more afraid in my life. I did not know what business my papa had with the _Vampiri_, but he had insisted I travel with him from our village to their castle. The path to it was ominous and the only light we had from the moon, which cast shadows on the dirt road from the tall trees.

Leaves rustled beside me as if someone was running fast enough to keep up with my horse. I winced when I heard the scream of some small animal to my left and I urge dear Raluca to quicken her pace.

"Is it much further, papa?" I asked him. My father, dressed in a black cloak and vest, shook his head.

"No more than half of an hour, my daughter." I nodded, taking a moment to release Raluca's reigns that had been clasped tightly in my hand to pull up the hood of my dark green traveling cloak over my red hair. It had flown off in the late Autumn wind, the very same wind that made me shiver.

I wished my papa had allowed me to dress as he had. Instead of allowing me to wear warmer clothes, he insisted that I choose my best dress. I did not know why he wished me to look beautiful for the Demons of the Night as he called them. I am ashamed that I did not see it when I had the chance to escape.

My best dress was thin, made of white silk and very intricate. It washed out my pale skin, however, but papa assured me I looked beautiful. I shivered once more, praying the wind would stop soon but it stubbornly blew on.

"Papa." I whispered. He looked to me in annoyance.

"Why do you bother me?" He asked sharply.

"I merely wanted to know why I was invited to come with you." I replied. He smirked. I did not dare ask why we were going at all, that would have only resulted in a lash when we returned home. My papa believed a young lady should hold her tongue in the presence of a man and keep her curiosity at bay. After many years and many lessons he needed to teach, I conformed to his wishes.

It made me sad to know I would spend the rest of my life obeying his rules until he found me a husband, after which I would have to conform again to his wishes. I wanted to be free and to see the world, but I had accepted what was expected of me and learned to wear a smile despite it.

My papa saw right through my false smiles. He said that I smiled just like my mama did; with my teeth and not my eyes. I do not remember much of my mama, only stories that my papa would sometimes tell me. I was sure these stories held no amount of truth, for my papa painted my mother out to be a horrible wench who had run off with my father's gold as well as his heart.

I learned the truth from Estelle, a spinster who owned our village's tavern. She remembered my mama well, who would come in and order ale the same as any man. So strong spirited was she that she decided life with my papa was no life at all, and so she left. I wish I could do the same, but I knew I would never be free of my papa, not in that life.

I had lived in fear of when I would reach womanhood, for none of the men in my village were handsome or kind. I must sound wicked, thinking only of a beautiful face, but a young lady could not live by the contents of one's heart alone.

My papa began to bring suitors to our large house when I was but fourteen. I tore and my hair and scraped up my knees when they began to file into our abode. This kept them at bay, no one wanted to be reminded of the fact they were marrying a lady who was but a child who played in the streets as they once did.

It had been three years since then, and I was seventeen. Well on my way to becoming a spinster like the old woman I had spoken to about my mama, my papa had grown desperate in attempting to rid the house of me. I had mentioned within the last week of leaving on my own to see the world, and I was still sporting the bruise on my collar bone where my papa had struck me.

He had attempted to enroll me at the Abbey, but it seemed as though the Reverend Mother felt that a life as a nun would suit me ill, for she declined my papa's offer.

_Perhaps he intends to leave you in the forest! _I thought with a genuine smile. What I found to be amusing was unlike anyone I had ever met and was the only thing that bring forth a true smile from me. My papa would never see me smile genuinely, they would never be for him. I sobered quickly however, bottling my laughter as I became aware that the idea of abandoning me in the forest was likely a thought that had passed through my papa's mind. The woods were crawling with wolves, it would be all too easy to blame my disappearance on a sudden attack.

I shook my head. Deep down I knew my papa loved me, he would never and could never leave me to my own under-developed devices. Living as the daughter of the leader of our village had given me a privileged and sheltered life. Not once had I gone hungry while the children in the streets starved. Not once was I forced to wear anything but the finest garments while the townspeople had to wear rags. I was quite lucky to be born to such a high stature, but I could never turn a blind eye to the ruin like my papa could.

A war had raged on for as long as I could remember between the people of Romania and the invading Romans. They wished for us to believe in their Gods and Goddesses, we resisted, we were massacred. The death spread quickly, killing off most able-bodied men and leaving women to do the work to support their families. I was kept safe, away from all the pain and misery. Papa would scold me when I came back from the market with the shopping and my purse empty. No one had stolen from me, I had given it away to those in need. He did not approve.

I pulled myself out of the sadness that shrouded my homeland and instead focused on what the _Vampiri_ would be like. I allowed my imagination to run as free and as wild as the horses in the mountains when I thought of them and the stories I had heard.

They were supposed to resemble Angels with flawless features. The only thing to shatter the illusion and warn their prey was their eyes that were said by survivors to be the color of blood because they drank so much. People would be collected every now and again and brought down the same path we rode, never to be seen again.

I wondered if they were as merciless as they were made out to be. I wondered if they would help my papa with what he wanted. I hoped that he would be asking them to help win the war, we needed help. Despite that, I knew my papa was proud, proud and foolish. He had waited for too long to seek out aide and now it was almost too late.

"Daughter." I heard my papa say. I looked up to him, letting the images of what I thought the vampires would look like fade. "We have arrive, my child." As soon as he said this, my eyes drifted from him to the structure in front of us.

It was a castle.

I thought my home was large, but it was a shack in comparison to the grand and refined building that lay before us. It was made from dark stone with steel gates locked in front of it. The windows were large and made of panes of glass, separated from each other with black curlicues. From inside, lamps gleamed. I could barely see through the frosted glass, but many people were walking up and down the steps.

My papa waved his hand, telling me to get down on my horse. This was normal, a woman was not equal to a man, she did not ride when meeting company if he did. I got down off of Raluca, giving her head a light pat.

"Hurry along." Papa commanded and I followed him, taking only the smallest steps due to the restriction of my skirt.

I took a deep breath, trying to swallow my fear. I found it wasn't to difficult for as soon as the dark gates opened on their own, I found that I was filled with an entirely different emotion all together.

Excitement.

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_Really small footnotes section:_

_Vampiri_: Vampires.


	2. Chapter 2: Twelve Thrones

**A/N: I'm glad I got a response! Please read and review!  
**

**_Chapter Two: Twelve Thrones_**

The walk towards the Vampire lair felt like an eternity. I knew that I was moving forward, and yet I did not seem to be getting anywhere. My papa seemed frightened, and I was too, almost. I found it incredibly exciting that I would meet Vampires. They were monsters told in fairy tales that lived among us, they were real!

They drank blood, yes, but they also had eternal life. I knew I would have quite liked to live forever, as there would be no war, no disease and no famine to stop you from completing your goals.

To be one of them was almost to be free. Even if you were a woman, I'd heard that you had power. You could take what you wanted, when you wanted. Be it education or adventure or anything your still heart could desire, it was yours. The world was yours. I knew at that moment why my papa had chosen to come to them in search of help. They were nearly Gods!

Once again, I found myself hoping that the vampires would find my papa's cause worthy enough. They were said to be unintimidated vampires who could not resist the call of battle and bloodshed. I prayed that they had not grown weak due to their comfortable lifestyle.

I dismissed such thoughts; being a vampire aside, these were once men of Romania! Our country was home to the finest and fiercest of leaders. Our men were brave, but our men were falling. The vampires would not, I was sure. They could save us.

"Papa." I whispered to him. I am unsure he truly did not hear me or if he was merely ignoring me, for he did not answer. I clung to Raluca's leather reigns, even when they began to dig into my skin, and reminded myself to breathe as we approached the doors.

They were quite large and made of ebony wood. Intricate and beautiful carvings were etched on to the front of them and they were held in place by huge, iron bolts. Metal knockers shaped like the ghoulish faces of gargoyles hung near the middle, inviting you to knock but also warning you of the terror that lay inside.

I watched as my papa raised one of his pale, shaking hands to clasp one of the knockers, raise it, and then bring it down on to the expensive door twice.

The sound that the metal hitting the wood made was deafening and it was not too long a wait before the doors swung open and we were bade entry. I let go of Raluca's reigns and told her not to go beyond the gate. She would listen to me, she was a good girl. I turned and headed back towards my papa, knowing she would be safe. Most of the vampires did not drink animal blood, I knew no harm would come to her.

"Good bye, my dear." I whispered to her as my father dismounted from his steed, Teodor, and entered the dark and imposing castle. I followed behind him, reaching forward out of habit to clasp his hand for moral support. I held his hand tightly and for the first time in my life, my papa held my hand as well.

"Do not be afraid." He said to me in a voice barely above a whisper and I shook my head quickly, my eyes darting everywhere, looking to the shadows of the elegant castle.

Everything was dark and a just bit dusty, with unlit chandeliers hanging from the high, domed ceiling. The wallpaper was pristine and beautiful in a dark burgundy while the floor was clean and made of almost black wood. The furniture looked almost a little bit unused, but still it was probably expensive.

I glanced to my right and found myself looking into a large mirror. I gave myself an encouraging smile that faded easily as I turned back to my papa.

"I am frightened of the dark, you know this, papa." I whispered back to him. He shook his head slowly.

"Is it not dark when you close your eyes?" He quietly asked me and I nodded, unsure of what he hoped to gain from that question. "And does that frighten you?" I shook my head. "Then you have nothing to fear." I allowed myself to laugh at his little joke.

Fear suited my papa well. This was the first time he had ever been this kind to me. My laughter died when a tall man of brute-like stature emerged from the shadows, prompting me to shriek a little bit.

"If you will follow me, favor-seeker and his companion." The tall and imposing man clad in black instructed. His hair was long and dark as a ravens wing. His eyes were black as he surveyed me. He gave me an almost cruel smile at my reaction.

I looked down at the ground to escape his gaze as he led us past rich paintings and tapestries. The castle was dark, and yet fair at the very same time, much like our guide.

He wore strange black robes made of a foreign fabric. Swen into the hem that brushed the ground and hung at his wrists was strange markings. His collar rose up to his chin, covering his neck that I was sure was as chalky pale as the rest of his skin. He was dark and foreboding, but also quite handsome. I did not feel drawn to him however, he gave off a feeling that told me to stay away.

"Through these doors." He told us as we came to yet another set of richly engraved double doors. They were just as stunning as the front doors, but signs of weathering were not present as with the last pair, which I was sure were constantly exposed to the elements. The doors parted and I sucked in a nervous breath as we walked through them into the court of the vampires.

The room was large, round and tall. The walls where sconces hung and burned stretched so far up it made me dizzy to look at. The ground was made of a shiny black stone that felt almost slippery to walk across and fear flooded through my mind as I pictured victims struggling to escape this awful place, with blood spurting from their necks.

I shivered and moved a little closer to my papa, who promptly pushed me away. I had grown accustomed to the random bursts of affection from him at the oddest of times, but it seemed to sting more than ever as it was observed by thirteen new pairs of eyes.

Eleven of those thirteen sat elevated above the shiny floor. They sat on large, intricate thrones carved from a dark marble. They looked like kings and queens sitting their with their red eyes and pale skin.

Their were two men that looked like twins who each sat furthest to the left and furthest to the right. Their long, dark hair fell into their angular faces as they sneered at us. They looked hungry.

The next pair of vampires seemed to come from the same gene pool as well, with wild blonde hair. Their eyes were different however, one looked much older than the one sitting opposite to them.

The next pair were entirely different. One was a man, the other a woman. Each had a wedding band snaked around their finger and I could see that while they were watching me carefully, they often stole glances at each other.

In fact, every single one of them had a wedding band on, all accept for one man.

He was on an even higher platform, elevated above all of the other members of his court. Beside him sat a man with chalky skin and dark hair along with a fair woman with honey-brown hair and equally pale skin dressed in black.

He however, sat next to an empty throne, as if his mate was missing. I wondered where she was, for there was no way a man like that could be unmarried. He was by far the most handsome in the room with ashy blonde hair that could have almost been white, and eyes so dark they appeared black in the half-light. There was a milky film resting over his eyes, as if he was beginning to fade away.

His eyes narrowed when they caught sight of me and my papa standing in the center of the room.

"Who are you?" The question came in synchronization from the twins, which frightened me a little bit.

"M-my name is Alexandru." He replied.

"Why have you come here, human?" One of the vampires with wild blonde hair asked in a high, breathy voice. My papa seemed frozen for a minute and it it only when I nudged him a bit that he began to speak.

"I-I come s-seeking a f-favor." He stuttered out. The vampires all smirked at his fear that he tried so desperately to conceal.

"What favor could a human ask of us?" I turned my head to see the very last vampire standing in the corner, the one who led us in. My papa looked to him in surprise and then returned his attention to the vampires sitting on thrones.

"M-my village has been at war w-with the R-Romans for many years. O-our resources a-are all but d-diminished and outside help is a necessary key t-to victory." The vampire with the dark, cropped hair seemed interested. It was at that moment the vampire I couldn't take my eyes off of, the one sitting next to an empty throne, looked right at me. He seemed to look through me and I almost debated looking away when the faintest ghost of a smile curled onto his pale lips.

"This is very intriguing." The almost white-haired vampire replied as I looked away and blushed slightly. "Who is your companion?" He asked and my papa looked to me as if i had done something wrong.

"My daughter." He said flatly. The white-haired vampire lifted an eyebrow at his response, turning to me.

"What is your name?" He asked. I opened my mouth to speak but my papa was too quick for me.

"Her name is-" The dark-haired vampire silenced him with a glare.

"We were referring to your daughter." He said with a malicious grin. My papa shrunk. He was unaccustomed to being reminded of things. They returned their attention to me and I told them my name. The blonde vampire nodded, almost as if in approval. He then turned his attention back to my papa.

"If we were to consider your interesting offer, what payment could we expect?" He asked. My papa smiled, his fear melting away to nothingness and looked to me with pride.

"Your payment stands before you." My eyes widened as I looked to my papa. My blood ran cold when I saw he was serious. "My only child in exchange for the protection of my village." I looked towards the vampires. My breathing was shallow and rapid. I knew my papa wanted to do away with me, but to sell me? He must have been lying!

"Papa, have you gone mad?!" I shrieked. I let out a whimper when struck my arm, making me fall silent.

"You would sell your only child for a place to call home?" The vampire woman with wild blonde hair spat. Had I not been so afraid, I would have laughed at the irony; she was disgusted by my papa's offer when she drank blood to live.

This did not seem to be the reaction my papa anticipated, for he back up a small bit when the white-haired vampire rose, glaring at him. He looked to the burly vampire in the corner who nodded.

I didn't have time to scream as the hulking monster ran across the room so fast that all you could see was a blur and sink his fangs into my papa's throat. He was dead in a second. I looked up to the vampires in fright, staggering backwards at the disgusting sight of my papa's blood on the floor. I felt like I was going to be sick when the vampire who smiled at me spoke.

"Any man who would sell his daughter like a prostitute deserves nothing less than death." He said, more to my papa then to me. I put a hand over my mouth to stifle my screams as I took another step backwards, lost my footing and fell.

I did not bother to hold back any shrieks or sobs as the tall vampire threw my papa's body down as if it was a doll and wiped his blood-stained mouth on his sleeve.

"You- you" I couldn't form words, I was too afraid as he turned and began to walk towards me. I looked to my papa, who stared at me with glassy eyes, and promptly fainted, letting the sadness and fright consume me.


End file.
